This invention relates to a hard material.
Ultra-hard materials may be defined as those materials which have a Vickers pyramid hardness greater than 40 GPa. Examples of such materials which currently find extensive use in industry are diamond and cubic boron nitride. These two ultra-hard materials are not suitable for all applications, despite their hardness. For examples, diamond is a poor abrasive for many iron materials as iron tends to react chemically with the diamond under abrasive conditions. There is thus a need for an ultra-hard material with a chemical composition different from that of diamond and cubic boron nitride. The literature contains references to theoretical predictions and suggestions as to such materials.